Comments

I figure that you would get your pilots license just like you do now. You go out to the airport, fly your LSA for the required number of hours and pass a test with an FAA examiner. As far as regulating air traffic or the "skies being full of these things", I just don't see where this is a problem. If you have to go to an airport to take off and land, then you should have to follow the Federal Aviation Regulations to fly it. Maintain your Visual Flight Rules cruising altitudes (odd thousands + 500ft eastbound, even thousands + 500ft westbound), file flight plans on your way to the airport, get there, get in line to take off and go. Get in the air, talk to ATC to get "flight following" and get to your destination. The big problem right now is that big airports are too crowded, not the skies in general. The dumbest thing any would-be "Skycar" inventor would do is to make it and tell people that it could take off from any road and land on any road. This would make things way too chaotic. One thing that would make it a little better is if you didn't have to drive to the airport. If you have a couple of acres, why not make a landing strip behind your house. Or even better, live in an airpark community. Then you have 15 different families sharing the costs of building and maintaining a runway. This way you leave out the driving to the airport! You pull out of your garage, unfold your wings, do your pre-flight inspection and go. This could possibly cut your trip time in half, depending on how fast this thing can fly. Of course, small airplanes are most economical on flights that would take you at least 3 hours to drive. Another big factor in that statement is in the fuel consumption of this "roadable aircraft". Another thing that could make this more feasible is if they get it certified for IFR flights, not just playing around VFR. Then again, you would have to get your instrument rating on your pilot's license, but it is definately necessary. There have been way to many accidents where pilots with no instrument trainging have run into IFR conditions and lost control and gone spiralling into the ground (think JFK junior). As far as being easier to drive to the airport, fly where you want to go, and then renting a car when you get there, it's not always feasible. If your going to meet with a client that lives in some small town, there may not even be a rental car agency around. I think these guys have a neat idea. It may never become mainstream because it is much more of a novelty than a necessity, but they have gone about this in the right way as far as their business plan is concerned. I think it could do well with people who were planning on getting their Sport Pilot certificate anyway. At this point, it will be just like any other aircraft, the people who have the money will have one and the people who don't have enough money for it (like me) will be driving along cursing those who have money to throw away.